What's best to finish a carving made from mahogany

[Demonmane]

Hi I dont know much about the finish. ive tried using a standard clear varnish but the wood seems to look too light and ive tried using a varnish with a mahogany stain in it but that tends to look like its been poorly painted in an attempt to look mahogany. what is a common thing to use or am i just doing it wrong?? cheers

Dean

[Donsexton]

I like paste wax hand rubed into the wood.

[telecarver]

Originally Posted by Demonmane

Hi I dont know much about the finish. ive tried using a standard clear varnish but the wood seems to look too light and ive tried using a varnish with a mahogany stain in it but that tends to look like its been poorly painted in an attempt to look mahogany. what is a common thing to use or am i just doing it wrong?? cheers

Dean

By varnish, do you mean urethane? If so, did you use an oil or water base?
Waterbase urethane will come out looking very light. If you used an oil base it will be much darker and richer. If it is still too light, you can stain it before applying urethane with a gel stain. This will tend to be darker in the areas where there is exposed end grain.

I prefer to finish the carving with urethane and then stain it to accentuate the details. You can wipe on a gel stain and then wipe it off or use airbrush paint with an airbrush to stain it. Apply another coat of urethane over the stain. Look at the carving that is my avatar. It is mahogany that was finished in this way.

These instructions may vary depending on weather it is intended for indoor or outdoor use.

[Demonmane]

Ah! thanks! I think i was using a water based varnish by looks of it. what colour of stain do you use? your stuff has a really nice colour. so i put varnish first then stain then a second varnish?

[telecarver]

Originally Posted by Demonmane

Ah! thanks! I think i was using a water based varnish by looks of it. what colour of stain do you use? your stuff has a really nice colour. so i put varnish first then stain then a second varnish?

For interior pieces I first apply two coats of Bullseye Universal Sanding Sealer and fine sand between coats with 320 grit sandpaper. It's an alcohol base, not the same as nitrocellulose lacquer base sanding sealer. I do this to seal the end grain so it doesn't suck in the stain and cause a blotchy look. I airbrush with dark brown airbrush paint but you can also brush on a gel stain. Use a dark brown such as walnut. After you apply the stain, wipe it down with a dry rag to remove the stain on the surface leaving stain in the recesses. I keep an additional rag handy with either paint thinner or water depending on the stain I'm using to wipe any areas that didn't get clean enough with the dry rag. Let the stain dry thoroughly. I then spray on and additional coat of clear satin water base urethane. Airbrush paint is water soluble so don't brush on the final coat if you are airbrushing. You can apply the urethane with the airbrush on smaller pieces.
The average color between the dark and light areas give the whole piece a dark rich look while still allowing for the details to stand out.
I use a slightly different method for exterior pieces.

[Demonmane]

Thanks thats actually been really helpful! i couldn't find a full 'how to' on finishing stuff before

[ironMan-Carve]

Telecarver,

Do you have a preferred finish for your exterior work. I have never found anything besides paint that holds up reasonably well to the sun and weather.

Steve

[telecarver]

Originally Posted by ironMan-Carve

Telecarver,

Do you have a preferred finish for your exterior work. I have never found anything besides paint that holds up reasonably well to the sun and weather.

Steve

You are correct. My answer would depend on the type of carving and the attitude of the owner of the carving. Regular maintenance is a must. Any clear built up finish such as urethane will break down in the sun. If it isn't maintained regularly it will have to be sanded or stripped in a few years and re-finished. This is a difficult job on a detailed carving. The best clear built up finish I have used is Sikkens Cetol 1 followed by Cetol 2. it will still fail in a few years if not cleaned, sanded lightly and re-coted regularly.
For exterior signs and sculptures I use a penetrating oil sealer. The carvings need to be re-coated a minimum of every two years. It's quick ad easy to re-coat. In Switzerland, where I have done a number of carvings, the owners are religious about maintenance and carvings I did 27 years ago still look great. Carvings I did five years ago for people in this country who are sloppy about maintenance look bad.